How to Cite a PowerPoint Presentation in MLA

Your instructor just gave a fabulous lecture in PowerPoint that you could use in your MLA paper. But how do you cite a PowerPoint presentation in MLA style? Learning how to format an in-text citation for PowerPoint in MLA isn’t as hard as you might think. But, it will depend on if the presentation was given during a lecture or if you found the PowerPoint online. For clarity, you’ll learn both how to cite PowerPoint lectures and online PowerPoint presentations for your PowerPoint bibliography or works cited.

How to Cite a PowerPoint in MLA

PowerPoint presentations can make great sources to back up your research. But, when it comes to citing them, you might be lost. You can cite a PowerPoint presentation as a non-lecture or a lecture. Learn how through examples.

How to Cite a Non-Lecture PowerPoint Presentation

For a non-lecture PowerPoint presentation, you’ll need:

1. Instructor’s name
2. Title of lecture
3. Title of course
4. Date of lecture
5. Location
6. Type of presentation

Your PowerPoint works cited entry will include all of the information listed above, following the MLA citation format below.

Non-Lecture PowerPoint Works Cited Format

If the slideshow was created by other presentation software, such as Prezi, use that instead.

 

For the in-text citation of a PowerPoint presentation in MLA style, include the instructor’s name and the slide number, as in this example.

In-Text Citation PowerPoint MLA: Non-Lecture

If you don’t know the slide number, you may leave it out.

How to Cite Lectures in MLA

If your instructor presented the PowerPoint slideshow during your regular classroom time, you can cite the PowerPoint presentation as a lecture in MLA format. For how to cite lectures in MLA, recognize that this is going to look a little different from the non-lecture PowerPoint works cited and in-text citation formats.

Works Cited Format for Lecture in MLA

Lecture Works Cited Example

In-Text Citation PowerPoint MLA: Lecture

MLA Works Cited Slide in PowerPoint

Lectures can be considered primary sources and you may find useful sources within the Works Cited slide. The Works Cited slide is usually the last slide of the presentation and is formatted the same way as it would be for a research paper allowing for a smaller size. MLA uses a Works Cited page rather than a PowerPoint bibliography or references list.

Although lectures are primary sources and you can use them to back up your research, it is often better to use other sources like published peer-reviewed articles and books.

Creating a MLA Works Cited PowerPoint Slide

If you are preparing a research-based PowerPoint presentation, make sure you include a Works Cited slide and proper in-text citations. This means that you’ll follow the same formatting guidelines and core elements to cite your sources in your Works Cited slide as you would for a written paper. Remember that this isn’t a PowerPoint bibliography, as you’ll only list sources you cited directly in your presentation.

How you cite each entry will be different depending on the source. If you used a book, follow the citation for a book in MLA. If you need to cite a play, you would follow the MLA play citation format.

PowerPoint, Prezi and other slideshow software offer a fun and interesting way to inform your readers about your MLA school essay.  Slideshows can be converted easily into videos and posted on YouTube and other sites.

PowerPoint Presentations in MLA

Whether you are creating a PowerPoint presentation of your own or you are citing one, it is all about formatting. Just follow the guidelines of the MLA citation system and you will be golden. And if you need a little help, you can’t go wrong with the MLA citation page for further guidance.